SHARE ON: |
| |
| |
 |
 |
|
|
A Texas nurse was convicted Tuesday of capital murder in the deaths of four patients who died after prosecutors say he injected them with air following heart surgeries.
The Smith County jury deliberated for about an hour before finding William George Davis, of Hallsville, guilty of capital murder involving multiple victims. Prosecutors planned to seek the death penalty during the sentencing phase, which was scheduled to start Wednesday.
Davis, 37, was accused of injecting air into the four patients arteries after they underwent heart surgery at the Christus Trinity Mother Frances Hospital in Tyler in 2017 and 2018. During recovery from their surgeries, the four -- John Lafferty, Ronald Clark, Christopher Greenway and Joseph Kalina -- suffered unexplained neurological problems and died.
During the trial, Dr. William Yarbrough, a Dallas-area pulmonologist and professor of internal medicine, explained to the jury how injecting air into the arterial system of the brain causes brain injury and death.
Yarbrough said he was able to determine there was air in the arterial system of the victims brains by viewing images from brain scans -- something he said he had never before observed in his decades in medicine.
He ruled out blood pressure problems or any other causes of death besides the injection of air, and said it must have happened after the surgeries because the complications occurred while the patients were in recovery.
Defense attorney Phillip Hayes told the jury that the hospital had issues and that Davis was a scapegoat who was only charged because he was there when the deaths occurred.
Prosecutor Chris Gatewood said during closing arguments that Davis liked to kill people. And prosecutor Jacob Putman said the hospital hadnt changed any of its procedures and hadnt had any similar incidents since Davis left.
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
 |
 |
6 pm |
| 17 ℃ |
| OVERCAST CLOUDS |
WIND: WNW 11 KM/H
GUSTING TO 16 KM/H |
|
|
 |
7 pm |
| 17 ℃ |
| OVERCAST CLOUDS |
WIND: WNW 15 KM/H
GUSTING TO 18 KM/H |
|
|
 |
8 pm |
| 16 ℃ |
| OVERCAST CLOUDS |
WIND: NW 14 KM/H
GUSTING TO 24 KM/H |
|
|
 |
9 pm |
| 15 ℃ |
| OVERCAST CLOUDS |
WIND: NW 12 KM/H
GUSTING TO 23 KM/H |
|
 |
 |
10 pm |
| 14 ℃ |
| OVERCAST CLOUDS |
WIND: NW 10 KM/H
GUSTING TO 21 KM/H |
|
|
 |
11 pm |
| 12 ℃ |
| OVERCAST CLOUDS |
WIND: NW 11 KM/H
GUSTING TO 21 KM/H |
|
|
 |
12 am |
| 11 ℃ |
| BROKEN CLOUDS |
WIND: NW 11 KM/H
GUSTING TO 18 KM/H |
|
|
 |
1 am |
| 10 ℃ |
| CLEAR SKY |
WIND: NNW 12 KM/H
GUSTING TO 21 KM/H |
|
 |
 |
 |
TODAY |
HIGH OF 17 ℃
LOW OF 9 ℃ |
| LIGHT RAIN |
|
|
 |
THURSDAY |
HIGH OF 16 ℃
LOW OF 9 ℃ |
| OVERCAST CLOUDS |
|
|
 |
FRIDAY |
HIGH OF 23 ℃
LOW OF 10 ℃ |
| BROKEN CLOUDS |
|
|
 |
SATURDAY |
HIGH OF 34 ℃
LOW OF 15 ℃ |
| BROKEN CLOUDS |
|
 |
 |
SUNDAY |
HIGH OF 23 ℃
LOW OF 15 ℃ |
| LIGHT RAIN |
|
|
 |
MONDAY |
HIGH OF 23 ℃
LOW OF 12 ℃ |
| MODERATE RAIN |
|
|
 |
TUESDAY |
HIGH OF 27 ℃
LOW OF 15 ℃ |
| LIGHT RAIN |
|
|
 |
WEDNESDAY |
HIGH OF 25 ℃
LOW OF 15 ℃ |
| BROKEN CLOUDS |
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
MORGAN WALLEN THIS SIDE OF A DUST CLOUD 06:08 PM |
 |
 |
MITCHELL TENPENNY SMOKE 06:04 PM |
 |
 |
LAUREN ALAINA A WALK IN THE BAR 06:01 PM |
 |
 |
LARRY FLEET HARD WORK AND HOLY WATER 05:55 PM |
 |
 |
JORDAN DAVIS ONLY ALL THE TIME 05:52 PM |
 |
 |
ASHLEY MCBRYDE LIVIN NEXT TO LEROY 05:48 PM |
 |
 |
ALEXA GOLDIE LIE 05:45 PM |
 |
 |
HARDY TAKE THE COUNTRY AND RUN 05:41 PM |
 |
 |
CHRIS YOUNG EVERYBODY GREW UP 05:38 PM |
 |
 |
KENNY CHESNEY JUST TO SAY WE DID 05:36 PM |
 |

 |